Sunday, October 30, 2011

So - I know that those of you who do not live in New England are probably going - "snowstorm shnowstorm - quit your whining - you live in Massachusetts!"

The problem with this particular snow storm is it messes with the natural order of the universe. You see - the leaves change color, then they fall off the trees, then the snows come. Pretty much how it normally works I have been told.

What happened here is a whole big fat stinking bunch of very wet snow came very fast and landed on all of the trees that were still full of leaves.

Then those trees broke.

A lot of them.

It seriously sounded like bombs going off last night.

All night.

I should really be napping.

Anyhow - here are some pics. We are all safe. No power and we are literally trapped in our neighborhood by downed trees and power lines. We lost a lot of branches but nothing hit the main structure of the house.

I had a third child at my feet reading a novel with her head against my leg.

I thought to myself

I want to freeze this moment.

I want to never ever forget the way that this feels and smells.

This is

Magic.......

Then someone elbowed me in the eye and the child at my feet asked me for the 900th time TODAY if I remembered to buy jello from the grocery store and I thought to myself

What on earth is the matter with the people that write these ridiculous Strawberry Shortcake books? Don't they realize that these are CHILDREN's books? How long is this thing? I think I got through War and Peace faster than this! Good grief I need someone to come and take me out of my misery here. Surely this is almost over......

oh but I do still want to remember that moment - the one right before all of that happened

Parenthood is such a contradictory thing isn't it? Happens too fast - drags on like torture all in the exact same moment.

Monday, October 10, 2011

Pinterest is the Bomb Diggity and you know I don't throw that word around much

(or ever really now that I think of it)

Anyway - I digress.....

I was sitting here looking through pinterest and all of the creative, amazing, fabulous pins and I was thinking to myself

"Self" (Cuz' that's how I think)

"Self - I have got to think of something really really good to put on pinterest so people will repin an I Heart Bowheads pin."

Because - hey not gonna lie - how cool would that be?

So I was thinking and thinking as I was scarfing down a bowl of leftover Pumpkin Dump Cake

(see licked bowl below)

Hmmm - what is really delicious or creative or awesome that works well for this time of year and that people would really like to repin?

crickets

then some more crickets

then me to self

"Self - I really do love this pumpkin dump cake. I wonder if the children would notice if I went back for another bowl?"

crickets

what could I possibly write about that would make people repin me?

LIGHTNING STRIKING

"Holy Cow Self!!!!! You should totally post the recipe for Pumpkin Dump Cake and people will repin it!!!!!! (If they are still reading after you have stretched this post out like a girdle on a beauty queen. Oh great now if they are still reading this post after you have poked at the beauty queens. Oh great this is getting even longer. Stop typing Holly stop it you can do it!!!!!)

Anyhoo

Here is the awesome recipe from my friend Allison that she gave me at a scrapbooking night and I have loved like one of my own children ever since.

Pumpkin Dump Cake

1 29 oz can of pumpkin

1 12 oz can evaporated milk

3 eggs

1 cup sugar

1 tsp salt

3 tsp cinnamon

1 yellow cake mix

1 cup chopped nuts (I use pecans that I pound in the little package with whatever is handy so they are pretty fine - the children think that this part of the process is the most entertaining)

3/4 cup melted butter

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Use a 9 x 13 inch pan (although I often use 8x8 - works out just fine - basically - use whatever pan you have handy). Mix first 6 ingredients and pour into the pan. Sprinkle the dry cake mix over the goopy pumpkin goop in the bottom of your pan. I generally use a fork to sort of unclump the mix and spread it out. Do NOT mix it in. It needs to sit on top of your pumpkin goop. (I should totally have a cooking blog. Forget this bowheads family stuff. I am going to take my fancy cooking terms and hit the road.)

Totally just kidding

and once again I digress.

Anyway - sprinkle the pecans on top of the dry cake mix

Then pour the melted butter (melt the butter - did I say that? Maybe I should rethink the cooking show thing - it is a lot of work to type these things out.)

Anyway - pour the melted butter over the top of everything and cover completely but once again - do not mix. Think in layers, my friends, layers.

Bake for 50 minutes (ish)

Serve warm

The leftovers are so good with your morning coffee (and then for your mid-afternoon snack and then for your after dinner dessert) that you will be thanking (and repinning me) all the way into at least next week. It will also make you super super popular at parties but here is how the conversation will go.

You will be all: "Looky here I brought pumpkin dump cake"

and they will be all skeptical: pumpkin dump cake? Looks brownish"

and you will be all: "You should smell my house - it smells like Martha Stewart is camped out in the basement - trust me try the pumpkin dump cake."

And then they will be all: "Well ok - take a bite - HEY THIS IS THE BEST THING I EVER ATE! HOW DO YOU MAKE PUMPKIN DUMP CAKE??????"